Adnan Ahmed Yousif

Adnan Ahmed Yousif

Adnan Ahmed Yousif, the chairman of the Union of Arab Banks, recently announced the launch of Istikhlaf Bank, a new Bahrain-based $10 billion Islamic bank, by the end of the year. He added that its shares will be listed on the Bahrain Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Dubai, and that they hope to raise $3.5 billion for the bank through an IPO.

“We call it the godfather of Islamic banks,” Yousif told reporters in Dubai.

The president and CEO of the Albaraka Banking Group (ABG), Yousif is considered as one of the founders of Islamic banking. He worked at the Arab Banking Corporation for 20 years and then joined the Bahrain Islamic Bank in which he was the CEO for two years. He was also awarded the 2004 Islamic Banker of the Year Award.